Factors associated with caregiver burden and quality of life among heart failure caregivers

• Main Authors: Huei-Chiun Hunag, 黃惠群
• Other Authors: Ai-Fu Chiou
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2015
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/98235047139727783137

碩士 === 國立陽明大學 === 臨床暨社區護理研究所 === 103 === The purpose of this study is to investigate the related factors of burden and quality of life on heart failure caregivers. It was a cross-sectional, descriptive study design. One hundred and eight heart failure patients and their primary caregivers were recruited from the cardiovascular outpatient departments at one medical center in northern Taiwan. Data were collected through medical record reviews and a structured questionnaire that gathered social-demographic data on the heart failure patients and their caregivers as well as information in accordance with Patient Health Questionnaire,The Medical Care Outcome Study Social Support Survey, Caregiver Reaction Assessment, , Oberst Caregiving Burden Scale, Dutch Heart Failure Knowledge Scale, Bathel Index, and Medical Outcome Study 36 item Short Form. These data were then analyzed with SPSS software using average, standard deviation, frequency distribution, independent t-test, one way analysis of variance, Pearson’s product-moment correlation, and multiple regression to perform descriptive and inferential statistics to understand the relationship between caregiver burden and caregiver quality of life and find the related factors and predictors. The result of this study showed that the caregivers had moderate levels of burden, better physical component summary score, and poorer mental component summary score. Important predictors of caregiver’s health burden were caregiver’s depression (t = 3.968, p < .001) and social support (t = −2.437, p = .017); predictor of self-esteem was caregiver’s depression (t = −2.427, p = .017); predictors of caregiver’s schedule burden included caregiver’s occupation (t = −2.535, p = .013), care duration (t = 2.016, p = .047), caregiver’s depression (t = 3.678, p < .001), and New York Heart Association (t = 3.020, p = .003); predictors of caregiver’s financial burden included caregiver’s economic status (t = −3.143, p = .002), caregiver’s depression (t = 3.152, p = .002), and social support (t = −2.604, p = .011); predictor of family support burden is social support (t = −3.314, p = .001). Important predictors for physical component summary score were caregiver’s age and Charlson Comorbidity Index, which accounted for 17.9% total variance. Important predictors for mental component summary score included caregiver’s depression, heart failure patient’s occupation, caregiver’s health burden, and caregiver’s schedule burden, which accounted for 50.6% total variance. This study highlighted the relationship between the burden on heart failure caregivers and their quality of life, so that interventions may be developed in the future to reduce caregiver's burden in order to enhance caregiver's quality of life.